


it was a lie when they smiled and said you won't feel a thing

by bi-tlejuice (bi_tlejuice)



Series: adventures of lydia deetz and the b-man [6]
Category: Beetlejuice (Beetlejuice) - Fandom, Beetlejuice - All Media Types, Beetlejuice - Perfect/Brown & King
Genre: Angst, Coming Out, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, They love each other, two bros - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-04-13
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:54:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23635651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bi_tlejuice/pseuds/bi-tlejuice
Summary: Lydia wakes him up at some interesting hour of the night by looming over him and hissing his name. It's not his fault this makes him yell. If you had some terrifying teenage girl standing over you in the middle of the night, clutching something that vaguely resembles a weapon, you would yell too."I want you to shave my head."
Relationships: Beetlejuice & Lydia Deetz, Beetlejuice/Adam Maitland/Barbara Maitland (minor)
Series: adventures of lydia deetz and the b-man [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1690348
Comments: 23
Kudos: 298





	it was a lie when they smiled and said you won't feel a thing

**Author's Note:**

> hi welcome i hope you like this

Lydia wakes him up at some interesting hour of the night by looming over him and hissing his name. It's not his fault this makes him yell. If you had some terrifying teenage girl standing over you in the middle of the night, clutching something that vaguely resembles a weapon, you would yell too. "I want you to shave my head."

Beetlejuice groans, pulling the end of her duvet over the top of his head. "Lyds, _sleep_." When he first started staying here, everyone was all _no Beetlejuice, we aren't going to be awake at night so stop doing stuff at night._ Funny how these things change.

"Shave my head or I'll shave yours the second you fall back asleep," she threatens, unblinking. "I made you tea."

"I'm _only_ doing this for the tea," he glowers, but he feels less tired when Lydia grins at him. "You're so fucking annoying, why d'you even want your head shaved? What's wrong with your hair?"

"Bored," she shrugs, leading the way to the bathroom and locking the door. "Mom always wanted to shave her head but she never got to. She'd think this was so cool." And well, he's hardly going to argue with that. "I'll do it, you've just gotta do the back bit 'cause I can't reach." The low buzz of the razor fills the bathroom as she holds up the first tuft of hair, staring at the mirror. "Ready?" she says, and he feels like she's talking to herself more than him but he catches her eye and nods anyway. 

Long ago, way before Lydia was even born, Beetlejuice deemed himself very good at vibe checks. Back in those days it was more 'energy readings' because the concept of 'vibes' was much less used, but he straight up refused to call himself an energy reader. That shit sounds so stupid. But yeah, if there's a vibe in the room, he's on it. It's kind of funny when you think about it, because in terms of actually interpreting **why** something is feeling a certain way, he pretty much always comes up with nothing. Right now, the bathroom is thick with some kind of- it's difficult to put into words. With the look on Lydia's face as chunks of hair fall into the sink, the way her lip is wobbling but her jaw is strong, with how she keeps looking at him for reassurance, he's getting the sense that this is really important to her. Why exactly, he's got not idea, but he'll work on that later. 

"Beej?" she asks, holding out the razor and pointing at the back of her head. It probably takes him longer than it should, but he hasn't cut his own hair since the 1940s and he's never used one of these things. "Hurry up."

"I don't wanna push too hard and cut your head, idiot."

"It's got a plastic guard on it," she explains, tapping the black claws that thread through her hair. So he goes for it, and surprisingly it doesn't do any damage.

"Tadah!" he cheers (quietly, obviously,) stepping back to admire his handiwork. Lydia smiles in the mirror, running her hands over her head. Beetlejuice thinks, "You kind of look like a tennis ball now. But like, a cool one."

"I _love_ it," she grins, posing in the mirror. Delia would likely refer to this as power posing. "I'm up now. Wanna eat cereal?" she asks, walking out of the bathroom before he has a chance to respond. In all fairness, he's also awake now, and if someone else wants to be awake with him he's not going to say no. 

"Depends," he says, eagerly floating down the stairs behind her. "Are you gonna let me eat the box?"

-

Lydia's excitement over her new hair lasts until 5:30 am when Delia gets up to do her morning yoga in the garden. She's nearly asleep again, occasionally piping up with the occasional comment as they both watch KUWTK to take the piss out of it but mostly sat with her head slumped against Beetlejuice's arm. She didn't let him eat the box, but she did let him eat the stale biscuits in the biscuit tin, so he considers this a win in the same way. 

"Oh my god," Delia says, dropping her yoga mat on the living room floor. "I- where- your hair?"

"I shaved it," Lydia says, tone somehow defensive even though it's groggy with sleep. 

"I see that," is all Delia manages to respond with. "Why is this?"

"Why _not_?" she frowns, stomping upstairs before Delia has a chance to respond. Delia herself just sighs, momentarily burying her head in her hands.

"Every time I think I'm- we're getting closer, she- I always-" she starts saying, voice going all thick and-

"Woah, ew. Don't cry. I don't want that," he says from the couch, not turning to look. "She did it 'cause she wanted to. Go tell her she looks cool." There's silence behind him and he thinks maybe that wasn't the right thing to say, but then the only noise he can hear is her sniffling getting further away as she runs up the stairs. It would be a lie to say he wasn't planning on eavesdropping, but then Adam comes downstairs in his pajamas and Beetlejuice promptly forgets everything else that's supposed to be going on. "Good _morning,_ " he grins, mock saluting.

Adam laughs, going a dull pink when Beetlejuice flicks the kettle on. "Morning yourself." 

-

"What did you do to Delia?" Lydia deadpans. Her tone is giving so little away that she could be referring to anything between smiling at Delia to setting her on fire. "She was all," she pauses, wrinkling her nose, "Nice. Did you possess her?"

"Yeah, 'cause I'm known for possessing people to be nice." Something is off with Lydia, he decides. She's been not leaving her room much for the last few days, but Barbara was all _leave her be, it's probably just a lot of schoolwork,_ so he's kept himself occupied by bothering everyone else. But now it's the weekend and Lydia was definitely awake all morning (she's been blasting My Chemical Romance,) but she hadn't come out of her room. A couple of hours ago he tried knocking to see if she wanted to go and smash stuff in the woods and take pictures, but she'd said something about being busy through the door and ignored him when he'd implied that wasn't true. Charles and Delia had gone on a date-lunch, leaving him with only the Maitlands to acknowledge his sulking (but they were shockingly not overly interested.) After several hours of complaining to the TV that he's bored, she finally came out to get some crackers. "Why're you in a mood?" 

"What's that supposed to mean." Oh, shit.

"Uh, like. You seem sad, I guess? I sense _emotional disturbance_." He knows this term from hearing Charles use it on the phone and pestering Barbara until she told him what it meant.

She snorts, putting the crackers back in the cupboard as if the conversation is over. "You wouldn't know emotional disturbance if it ripped open your ribcage and made home in your chest. I'm pretty sure your bloodstream is 70% emotional disturbance." With that, she walks back upstairs and after a few seconds, he hears her door lock. What's he supposed to do with _that_? 

-

"What's got you all _broody_?" Barbara sing-songs from the garden door. "Come sit in the sun, it's beautiful out here!"

"Lydia's in a bad mood and she won't tell me why," he grumbles, going to her anyway in hope that she'll coddle him. 

"It's a wonder to me that you can always tell her mood," she says. Her hair looks pretty and soft in the sun, and he wants to touch it. His lack of response seems to indicate that he's being serious, and she turns around in her deckchair to look at him. "Oh honey, are you worried?"

"I'm a demon, I don't get _worried._ " He's worried. She seems to pick up on this from the way he perches on the grass right next to her chair. "Why, d'you know what's wrong?"

"You're a sweetheart when you want to be, hm?" she smiles, going to pet his hair before he can protest. "Sometimes people don't want to share when they're going through something. Maybe she'll want to talk about it soon, or maybe she'll cheer up without ever talking about it. You have to respect people's boundaries, Beej."

"Ugh, _boundaries_ \- but it's not even about boundaries! I'm not being nosy, if she told me I might be able to help. I don't get why she wouldn't want help."

"Beetlejuice," Barbara sighs in her lecturing voice, "when in your _life_ have you ever been upset about something and even admitted that you need help, let alone _asked_ for it?" She's stumped him there. "Your mother cursed you to eternal sickness that left you worse than dead and you didn't even tell us."

"Yeah, but," he tries, coming up with pretty much nothing. "It's different when it's me."

"It's really not, hon," she sighs, but the softness is back in her voice. "I'm sure she'll come to you when she's ready." 

So Beetlejuice decides to wait. Barbara hasn't been wrong yet.

A week goes by and Lydia doesn't go back to normal. She's still not coming out of her room very much, and when she does she's grumpy and defensive whenever Charles tries to ask what's wrong. At first, he is accepting of this. But then she starts telling him not to sleep in her room because she wants to be by herself and he stops holding it together.

"What the hell is up with you, dude?" he snaps, seconds after she's told him to get out. "I've put up with you grumbling and being snappy for like, three weeks and now you're kicking me out of my sleeping area?"

"You've _put up_ with it?" Lydia repeats, voice cold and low. Oh, shit. Oh shit.

"No- no that wasn't fair, sorry- I shouldn't have said-"

"Why are you still in my room."

"Because I'm _worried_ about you, idiot! You can't just fucking hole yourself up in your room when you're sad and expect me not to care- why won't you just tell me what the matter is?"

Lydia doesn't say anything at first, just carries on glaring at the floor, and Beetlejuice thinks maybe he's got through. But then she starts glaring at him instead of the floor and crosses her arms. Maybe he's not gotten through to her. "Are you fucking _serious_? You've been living here for like, a year now and you have never- _never_ once come to me asking for help. You've never even admitted anything was wrong!" she snaps.

Beetlejuice is kind of in shock, because he's only ever heard Lydia shout once or twice, and it's never been at him. "I just- I don't want to make shit everyone else's problem, so nobody needs to know. But-"

"No, there's no _but_ here. You like to think you're different, that you're this powerful demon who nobody can read and doesn't need help from anyone. You're _not_. You show emotions just like me and all the other _breathers_ you look down on. You think me not talking to you is hard? At least I fucking acknowledge when something is wrong. Do you know how fucking hard it is to try and help someone who refuses to ever admit anything is wrong?" He opens his mouth to stop her but she's on a roll now, face red and fists clenched at her sides. "You think you're _putting up_ with my problems? I don't owe you _shit_ , Beetlejuice, and if you find being my friend so _hard_ then just _fuck off_."

Her face changes after she's stopped speaking - maybe she can see the look on his face, or maybe she just knows she's gone too far, but he doesn't stick around to see which one it is. 

The forest feels empty when he touches down, which is probably good as he has very little control over the hellfire that bursts out a few seconds later. When he opens his eyes, he's standing in a smoldering circle several feet wide, hands blackened and bleeding. Lydia's just some stupid teenage girl, why does he even care? She's right, she doesn't owe him anything and he has no reason to stay somewhere where he ends up feeling like _this_. Sure, if he leaves the house nobody can see him, but it'll be easy enough to find some gullible suicidal breather who can bring him back to life. He's not opposed to using force. 

Except- well, there's the whole thing with Adam and Barbara that he doesn't really want to walk away from. It's still new and weird and he doesn't know if he's doing anything right, but it's nice and exciting and he would miss them if he'd left. Chuck and Delia still seem kind of scared of him, but they're always up in the morning when he is and it would be sad to start eating breakfast by himself. Alone.

Who the fuck is he trying to kid? Yeah, Lydia's a stupid teenage girl who sulks all the time and yells stuff she doesn't mean and hates talking about her feelings, but she's still the closest thing he's ever had to a friend. Yeah, he's pissed off that she won't talk to him, but he's not going to leave. He's probably never going to leave. The state he's in right now, people can only see him inside the house he's inhabiting. If he left, he could find someone to bring him to life so he could go anywhere. But.

He'd rather be invisible than be alone. He'd happily never live again if it meant spending the next however long with Lydia and her family. 

"Shit," he says, looking dismally at the blackened grass around him. He hopes he didn't ruin everything.

-

Realisation aside, he's still mad that Lydia said all of that stuff, so he kicks around in the forest looking for newly passed animal spirits (they like to linger) until the sun goes down. When he reappears in the garden, her bedroom light is still on but the curtains are tightly drawn, so he figures she's not coming out any time soon. He's thinking about how a cigarette would be nice when Charles clears his throat behind him, leaning out of the garden door slightly. 

Beetlejuice makes a stance by not turning around. "Really not in the mood for a lecture, Chuck. Try tomorrow."

"I wasn't planning on a _lecture_ \- uh. I heard lots of shouting. Maybe-" he sighs, as if he can't find the words, and Beetlejuice turns around. "I know when _I_ have an argument with someone I care about, I find it useful to talk to someone else about it. I won't make you talk about anything. Uh. I'll be- I'll be inside if you need me." With that, he awkwardly salutes and walks away. What is he trying to be, Beetlejuice's dad or something? Is he going to make him hot cocoa and rub his shoulders?

Beetlejuice clears his own throat and goes inside.

True to his word (as he is every night,) Charles is sat at the kitchen table with only a lamp on, reading this morning's newspaper. When Beetlejuice stops next to the table, Charles looks up and his face is so _welcoming_ that Beetlejuice sits down without question. He smiles, something he doesn't do very often, before getting up to flick the kettle on. "Now," he says, busying himself with the mugs in the cupboard. "I was never very good at this whole, the whole talking thing. Emily always did that with Lydia. I had to learn very quickly, so I'm not quite. Quite there yet." The cocoa comes out of the special cupboard and for some stupid, ugly reason, Beetlejuice thinks he might cry. "However. From my past experiences with- uh, with _you_. I get the sense that you don't really do the _talking_ thing either, so maybe this can be a learning experience for both of us."

Beetlejuice accepts the freshly made cocoa, warming his hands with the mug and also feeling this sickly warm in the hollow of his chest that he never wants to go away. "I dunno what to say, though."

Charles frowns, folding his newspaper away as if he's been baffled by this response. "Well. Uh, let's start with, why are you angry at Lydia?"

"Because she fucking-" he starts, pausing when Charles holds a hand up. He takes a deep and overly unnecessary breath for someone without a functioning circulatory system, and tries again. " _Because_ she said all this really mean stuff to me."

" _Why_ did she say the mean stuff?"

"I don't even know! I was just trying to help and she was all, _you don't even know what emotional disturbance_ means, which is totally unfair because I got Barbara to google it for me, and _fuck off if you don't want to put up with me_ because I accidentally said put up with instead of- well, I dunno exactly what I should've said, but I kinda get why she didn't like that."

"Well, that sounds like a development already, right? You know you maybe need to change how you phrase some things?" Charles suggests, nodding eagerly when Beetlejuice agrees. "Okay. So, uh. Where from here. Uh... Right! Why were you arguing in the first place? Did she do anything else to make you angry _before_ the argument, or just during?"

"Yeah, she fuckin- sorry. She's been like, super depressed for like weeks now, it's so obvious, but she is refusing to talk to me about it. It just pisses me off _so_ much, 'cause she's got all this help from me or literally anyone, and like I would give anything to have- never mind, but my _point_ is it's just a waste to refuse to ask for help when it's right here."

"Well. There's a lot to unpack from that, really." Charles takes a deep breath and sips at his cocoa. "It sounds like you're not actually angry, you're just worried about Lydia and frustrated you can't help."

"That's not the same thing?"

Charles tries really hard to pretend that didn't make him wince, but Beetlejuice sees it anyway. "I, uh. I'd have to say no. Angry is like, angry at Lydia. Frustrated is like, angry at the situation but it's nobody's fault."

"Isn't it Lydia's fault for not telling me?"

"Well. Uh. No?" he tries. "It's difficult to explain. Sometimes for, for whatever reason, people _can't_ tell you. Reasons can be that they're scared, or worried, or maybe it's too complicated just to sit and explain. That reason is not important- what's _important_ is that you respect it when people don't want to talk about things. I know it's hard when something is wrong and people won't explain why- _trust me_ , I know. But- but it's about giving them space, and they'll come to you when they're ready."

"So I need to go and say sorry to Lydia? Right now?" he asks, frowning when Charles stops him from getting up.

"I would say yes, but maybe wait until tomorrow. It's quite late."

Beetlejuice nods, getting up only when Charles does. "Good talk, Chuck," he says to his face, and then not to his face, "It was really helpful." He holds his hand out with a handshake, because that's how Adam and Charles interact. Charles pulls him into a sudden and kind of awkward hug. Sure, it's clunky and Charles kind of speeds away afterwards, but Beetlejuice is taking this as a confession of _I see myself as your father_ and he's hovering with excitement without realising.

So, not wanting to waste any time, he wills the locked door of the office to open and creeps inside, fiending for some paper and a pen.

_hey Lyd_

_i had a chat with sum1 and i reelised even tho you were really mean, i was rong too. i am shit at saying the rite stuff. i am onestly really sorry that i said 'put up' with. i dont put up with you, you are my best frend and i always want to talk to you. i am not mad at you (other than you saying fuck off) i am just worreed about you and i want to help you feel okay. come and find me when u arenot mad anymore._

_love from beetlejuice._

Outside Lydia's bedroom door he thinks she sounds like she's asleep, but Beetlejuice really doesn't want to risk waking her so he figures slipping the note under the door will be more than adequate. Now that everyone's asleep, it makes sense for him just to curl up here - the rug is comfortable enough, anyway, and if he really focuses he can hear the gentle rumble of Charles snoring down the hall. Slowly, so it doesn't make any noise, he leans his head against her door and closes his eyes. Then he falls backwards and hits his head on Lydia's floorboards because she's just opened the door and is now staring down at him. Once he's scrambled to sit up she carries on staring at the floor, fingers fiddling with the rip in her pajama top. "Want to sleep in here then?"

"If you want," he responds, trying to gage her mood but not really being very good at it. Without saying anything else she turns, climbing back into bed. After he shuts the door the room is pitch black, but he knows it well enough to perch on the end of her bed with ease. There's silence, and he closes his eyes to actually sleep (this is definitely the comfiest place in the house) before her hand comes down and finds his hair. 

"Sorry I yelled," she half-whispers, patting his head gently. "I didn't mean it."

"Me too," he says back, hoping the emotion in his voice is covered by the comforter he's speaking into. 

"I thought- thanks for coming back," she says, the break in her voice louder than anything she could say. 

"I'm not going anywhere."

-

When he wakes up in the morning Lydia's still sleeping, arms loosely curled up around the stuffed dog she pretends is only for decoration. It's quite rare that he wakes up before her, so he can't help but carefully prop his chin up on his elbow and watch her. Breathers always look vulnerable when they're sleeping, but Lydia looks completely at peace, her expression uncharacteristically soft without any eyeliner or some kind of annoyed look on her face. For a moment, there's nothing wrong at all.

"Are you watching me sleep, you fucking creep?" she yawns without even having to look at him.

"No, that's gross," he protests, rolling over to stare at the wardrobe. "I was just waiting for you to wake up."

"I'm busy today, Beej," she says. He bites his tongue and doesn't demand she tells him what she's doing, instead jumping off the bed. 

"I'll uh, leave you to it, then? You know where to find me."

His hand is on the doorknob when she coughs lightly and says, "I'm visiting mom. Just so you know." It's not an invitation, and neither of them say anything else, but everything feels a little bit better when he closes the bedroom door behind him. 

Adam's just coming out of the bathroom, breath minty and face almost too close to Beetlejuice's when he stops next to him. "Everything okay?"

"All good," he promises, definitely not staring at Adam's mouth. "All better now."

"You wanna help me build a new bedside table in the garden?" he offers, even though both of them are completely aware that Beetlejuice is much more likely to be a hindrance than any help. 

So, that's what he spends the day doing. Mostly he's ever so slightly helpful (holding things in place is something he's quite good at) and occasionally he is very _unhelpful_ , like when Barbara comes out wearing a pair of Lydia's shorts because it's just so _hot today_ and he drops the hammer onto a panel of wood and it snaps in half. Seriously, these things are tiny, he's never seen this much of her legs and he thinks he might explode. Adam doesn't get annoyed that he broke a piece of wood because he also dropped something when Barbara walked out. 

"Has anyone seen Lydia? I need to ask her if I can borrow these," she calls out to them, seemingly oblivious. "What? Are they too short? I was trying something new- should I go change?"

"No," they both say at the same time. "You look-" Adam manages to say, pushing his glasses back up his nose.

" _Super_ fucking hot," Beetlejuice finishes. His face feels all fuzzy.

"Ah," Barbara hums, catching on. "Are you boys going to be distracted if I sunbathe out here?"

"Of course not," says Adam, but his voice betrays him. "We're just. I am going to get a drink," he announces, walking through the closed glass rather than the open door. 

"What about you, Beej?"

"I have never been more distracted in my life," he admits. He thinks maybe Barbara is the most beautiful person he's ever met. It's weird- this kind of conversation is commonplace now, but he still hasn't. Y'know, _kissed_ either of them yet. Is that something he's supposed to initiate? Is that even something that's supposed to happen?

"Hey, what time did Lydia leave, BJ?" Adam calls from the door, phone in hand and drink clearly forgotten. "I just called to ask when she'd be back but she didn't respond."

"I dunno, like- oh, like a while ago? Four hours?" Time is hard, but he knows how to read the little hand on the clock now. "She should be back soon."

Lydia is not back soon. Beetlejuice isn't worried, because he knows where she is, but then Adam is worried because the sun is starting to creep down in the sky and it's nearly dinner and she's still not answering her phone. Weirdly, nobody seems to know where she is - even Charles says she never mentioned she was going out - which makes him feel like he shouldn't tell them that he knows. Visiting mom is very important, and there's a risk they could interrupt if they all charge down there. He feigns ignorance for another hour or so, but then it _is_ dinner and Charles is home from work, and they're all _really_ worried (including Beetlejuice.)

So, trying his best to act like he knows nothing, he says, "I'll go out and look - I should be able to sense her." It's not a complete lie; as the person who said his name and stopped him being invisible, they do have some kind of connection. It's not strong enough for him to track her from a long distance, but he'll be able to tell if she's still in the graveyard or not when he gets there. Nobody will be able to see him unless she wants them to, so it's not like he'll have trouble sneaking up on her. 

"Take my phone," Charles says, holding it out.

"I don't know how to use that," he admits, because he's been around since before mobile phones and he never really had a need to get them when they came out due to having nobody to speak to. "It's fine, you can just summon me. Don't, though."

"But- how-" Delia is saying, so he figures now is a good time to leave. 

As soon as he gets to the graveyard he _can_ sense her, which is a good sign. He also has a vague idea of her current state: it's all over the place and very not happy, which is a bad sign. Still, she might just be having an important conversation with her mom, so he approaches with caution. 

He hears her before he sees her. The choked sobs are muffled in the fabric of her jeans as she cries into her knees, whole body shaking. In the time he's known Lydia, he's only seen her cry a handful of times, but _never_ like this. Even when he found her half starved to death in the Netherworld, she didn't cry, and she certainly didn't cry like this. He pauses, hovering above the dead grass for a second, because if she's just having a crying moment then it's probably rude to interrupt. But he stands there for what feels like ages and the sobbing doesn't relent.

"Lydia," he says, unsure of what else he can say. She jumps, turning around with tears and black makeup streaking her face. She looks like sorrow embodied, everything he never wants to see her feel.

The look on her face is reminiscent of a deer in the headlights as she scrambles to her feet, and for a moment he thinks she's going to try and run. Beetlejuice is ready to run after her. What he's not ready for is her to run over to him, slamming her face against his chest and wrapping her tiny arms around him. "Shh," he says, because that's how Barbara calms Delia down, squeezing her back gently because he's kind of afraid she might break. "It's okay, Lyd."

"It's _not,_ " she sobs, voice muffled by his jacket. "I- I'll never get- I want-"

"Hey," he interrupts, softly rubbing circles on her back. "Calm down before you try and tell me anything, kid." They stand there for a minute while she catches her breath, not stopping crying but not choking on her cries anymore. 

"I just want to _tell her_ ," she manages to get out, whole body still shaking. "And I can't, I never can- it's not _fair_ , I can't tell her anything again and I'm going to keep growing up and changing and she won't know me at _all_ and-"

"Lyds, breathe," he reminds her, cradling her head against him. She's so sad for someone so small and he doesn't know what to do with all this emotion. "What did you wanna tell her?"

"I'm _gay_ ," she sobs. 

Well. He wasn't really expecting that.

"Shit," he manages to say after a too-long period of time has passed. What the fuck is he supposed to say here?

She sniffles, still crying but seeming more wary than upset for a second. "Is that- do you- d'you care?"

"Oh- fuck, 'course I don't. You could grow another head and I'd still think you're awesome," he promises, and he means every word. "C'mon, let's calm down." Whilst it is crucial that she calms down, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't using this time to think of something to say. "Is this what's been makin' you sad?" he asks. She nods, stepping back and wiping her face with her sleeve. Tears are still spilling out freely, but she's much calmer than when he arrived. "I know- I get why you wanna tell her. And- look, I know it's not the same, but she probably knows." The butterfly is back, perched on Emily's gravestone as Beetlejuice sits down and motions for Lydia to do the same. "She's free to look over you whenever she wants- someone who loved their kid as much as she did is probably watching."

"But- what if she- what if she's not okay with it?"

"Why wouldn't she be?" he challenges, because from what he's heard, Emily doesn't sound like the homophobic type. 

"I- fuck, I don't know," she says, so quiet he barely hears it. She sighs dejectedly, leaning forward until her head is resting on his thigh. "I just- I miss her, Beej. I don't wanna grow up without her."

"I know," he says, because there's not much else he can say. "I know."

They sit like that for a little longer - he's waiting for her to stand up and suggest they leave when he realises she's fallen asleep, realistically very exhausted. And well, he doesn't see any reason to wake her, so he very (very) carefully lowers her head to the grass so he can stand up and scoop her up. The butterfly is still there as he positions her on his back piggyback style, looping her arms around his neck for stability. "I know it's hard for you to talk to breathers," he says, quietly, because he doesn't want to wake Lydia and he knows it can hear him. "But please try. Like, anything she'll think is a sign from you will do."

It flies away.

"Or not. Whatever." With that, he walks her to the end of the graveyard, hoping nobody is around to point and scream at him. It's odd that he thinks that- a year ago, he'd have given anything to make somebody shit their pants. It's funny how priorities change, hm?

Ideally, he'd like to walk her home because sometimes moving the way he does (he doesn't want to call it teleporting because that sounds weird) is quite the experience for breathers and he thinks the shock will wake her up. However, people will either see a dead guy carrying a helpless girl through town (see: bad) or see a goth girl floating through town and probably burn her as a witch (see: bad.) So he risks it.

When they appear in Lydia's bedroom, she stiffens then stirs but thankfully seems not to wake up. Slowly, he lies her down on her bed and starts unlacing her boots. On the bed she always complains she's too big for is swamping her; she looks so small and Beetlejuice wishes she was okay because she deserves it so bad. "Beej," she whispers as he eases the second boot off.

"Back to sleep," he murmurs, bringing her eyelids down for her before she can protest. After willing her to sleep for a couple of seconds, it kicks in - she slumps back on her pillow and her breathing slows. "Sleep well kiddo, he whispers, laying the blanket on her.

God. He kind of loves this stupid kid.

When he reappears downstairs everyone immediately jumps up, and oh yeah, he forgot everyone was desperately waiting for him to come home. "She's fine," he says, because they _all_ look like they may cry at any point. "She's sleeping upstairs."

"Where was she?" asks Charles, letting himself fall back down to sit on the sofa. 

"With her mom. Got sad, I guess." Barbara makes some kind of sad noise, but she still looks relieved. "I'll- I'm gonna go to bed. I'll watch her."

"Thank you," Charles says, and Delia leans forward and squeezes his hand.

_He doesn't always accidentally drift over into her dreams, but tonight he finds himself back in the graveyard, watching Lydia's back as she speaks to a blonde woman he's never seen before. Oh- it's Emily, most likely. It's not the easiest thing to possess a person he doesn't know in a dream and do it accurately, but he'll do it if it's for Lydia._

_There's silence as he gets ready, but then-_

_"Your hair looks **awesome** , kiddo," she's saying, leaning forward and touching Lydia's head. "Way cooler than I would've looked."_

_"Nah," Lydia's saying, but she sounds like she's smiling. "I miss you."_

_"Oh, Lydia. You beautiful thing. You don't need to miss me, kiddo. I'm never gonna stop being here."_

_"Did you- were you listening? Earlier, I mean."_

_"Yes, I heard. I wanted to give you a hug, baby. I'm so proud of you, y'know?"_

_Beetlejuice smiles before turning and silently leaving. It seems like Emily's got this covered._

Lydia wakes up before him, as normal, but instead of just getting up she shakes him awake. "Hey," he yawns, stretching on the end of her bed. 

She doesn't let go of his arm. "What'd you tell everyone?"

"That you were visiting your mom. That alright?"

"Yeah- I mean, did you tell them-"

"No, 'course not," he cuts in, because she has to know he wouldn't do that. "Not my secret to tell."

"Thanks," she says quietly, half-smiling. "I'll tell them. Just- not yet."

"Up to you, kid. You know they won't care, though?"

"Yeah."

"Want me to get a coffee before everyone starts bothering you?"

"If you want," she says, but she's properly smiling now. 

"Whatever," he responds, but he's smiling too. 

**Author's Note:**

> let me know what you think!


End file.
